NAmL San Rafael Pacifics

Fontaine's Grand Slam, 5-For-5 Night, Leads Pacifics

Published on August 24, 2013 under North American League (NAmL)
San Rafael Pacifics News Release


SAN RAFAEL, Calif. - Chase Fontaine's grand slam powered an eighth-run third inning as the San Rafael Pacifics cruised to a 13-3 victory on Friday night at Albert Park. The win got San Rafael back on track and erased a two-game blip on the radar that resulted in losses for the first-place ballclub.

The Pacifics (54-19) applied pressure on Maui (43-29) early with four stolen bases by the third inning and the bats took care of the rest. Every Pacifics batter who entered the game on Friday reached base. Fontaine finished 5-for-5 with two runs, six RBIs, and was walked in his final plate appearance. Kyle Dhanani, back hitting cleanup, went 2-for-2 with a run scored and three sacrifice fly balls. Maikel Jova also had a two-hit game. Price Kendall, Morgan Mickan, and Zack Pace all scored a pair of runs each.

"It's kind of like a swimmer tapering off getting ready for the final race. Depending on whoever we play, we're going to strap it on and give it our best effort," said Fontaine. "I struggled early in the year and just kept working. Let's just make sure it translates in the next two games."

With the pending Championship game on Sunday, teams are looking to save arms. Casey Russell (2-0) started for San Rafael and gave his team six solid innings of five-hit ball. Johnny Woodard, the team's first baseman and designated hitter most of this season, pitched a scoreless eighth, and closer Colin Allen, who last appeared in center field two nights ago when Bill "Spaceman" Lee played all nine positions, pitched a scoreless ninth.

"You sit in the bullpen and you never know when you're going to go in. You're always ready and then five out of six times you don't go in," said Russell. "It's nice to take pressure off the rest of the bullpen. It's the least I can do, let them have a couple of days to relax. They've been taking care of it all season."

Maui's only lead of the night came in the first but Mike Williams (7-3) couldn't hold a lead for his ballclub. Dhanani's first sac fly of the night tied the game in the bottom of the first. Three hits, three walks, and a sac fly in the third preceded Fontaine's grand slam. Despite the inning, Williams remained out there and ate up all eight innings for Maui, allowing single runs in the fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth, and saw his ERA balloon by half a run to 4.60.

The playoff field is now set. With a 16-2 victory over the Bay Cal Lumberjacks, the Vallejo Admirals secured the No. 3 seed and will face No. 2 Maui in the semifinals in Sunday's 1:00 p.m. game. The winner of that game will have a quick turnaround, facing No. 1 San Rafael at 5:00 p.m. in the Championship game, presented by First Federal Savings & Loan.

San Rafael and Maui meet again on Saturday, Aug. 24 at 5:00 p.m. The "Soup Nazi," Larry Thomas, who was Emmy nominated for his role on the hit television series, Seinfeld, will be on hand to sign autographs and pose for photos. If fans comply, he may even serve soup, presented by Miller's East Coast Deli. Then again, you may instead be greeted with "No soup for you!."

Tickets for both remaining dates are available at www.pacificsbaseball.com.

Check out the San Rafael Pacifics Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



North American League Stories from August 24, 2013


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central